Cold-storage apparatus or system.



Patented Mar.. I3, |900. A. J. TIBBITS.

COLD STORAGE APPARATUS UR SYSTEM.

(Application filed June 30, 1899.)

2 Sheets-Sheet I.

(No Model.)

ESSE No. 645,407. Patented Mar. I3. |900.

A. .1. lTllTs. COLD STORAGE APPARATUS 0R SYSTEM.

(Application led Bune 30, 1899.)

(No Model.) l 2 sheets-sheet 2,

Nrrnn STATES PATENT ARTEMUS J. TIBBITS, OF SOUTHFIELD, MICHIGAN.V

COLD-STORAGE APPARATUS OR SYSTEM.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters'Patent No. 645,407, dated March 13, 1900.

Application iiled .Tune 30,1899. Serial No. 722,410. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

, Be it known that I, ARTnMUs J. TiBBITs, a citizen of the United States, residing at South-` field, county of Oakland, State of Michigan, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in a Cold-Storage Apparatus or System; and I declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in theart to which it appertains to make and use the same,

reference beingv had to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification'.

My invention has for its object certain new and useful improvements lin a cold-storage apparatus; and it consists of the construction, combination, and' arrangement of devices v hereinafter described and claimed, and illusvtrated in the accompanying drawings, in

erating-chamber may either be keptmoist orv dry at the will of the operator. It is wellunderstood that some products desired tobe kept in cold-storage should be kept moist, various connected with a city water system and which may be provided with any desired distributproducts requiring to be kept also at dierent degrees of moisture.' Other products needto be kept dry while in cold storage. Some fruits and some vegetables also can be more satisfactorily kept with cold water dripping upon them. Other fruits would spoil if water were allowed to drip thereupon. Some fruits simply need to be kept damp or in a damp atmosphere. Potatoes, for example, will stand a continual drip of'water thereupon, as will oranges and lemons, while such vegetables and fruits will not keep in a dry storage. Apples, for example, in a dry-storage charnber, if they keep at all, lose their avor; but in moist storage the results are satisfactory. Eggs cannot be kept in a dry storage, as another example, for in that case they will evapober is indicated at a', provided with a coolingchamber b, partly surrounded by the chamber a, as upon three side of the chamber b, the same being Vprovided with a suitable entrance or door o, which may open to the eX- terior. Above the ice-chamber is an apartment d, within which may be located any suitable apparatus for properly introducing cold'water into the chamber of..

To ll the chamber a' with ice is an important feature of my invention. To accomplish this end, my invention contemplates icing t-he'chamber Ct or lling the same with ice in cool weather, as in freezing weather of winter,

by simply injecting or distributing water into the chamber d, preferably in the yform of spray, cooled as much as possible before its introduction into the icing-chamber. To this end the chamber d may be provided with a suitable entrance or door thereinto, or similar opening, (indicated at e3) to admit coldairY from the exterior into said chamber. A coil of pipe is indicated at e, which may be ing apparatus (indicated at f) to distribute the water into the chamber a. The distributing apparatus f may consist of a series of arms or jets, as indicated. Adifferently-arranged coil of pipes is indicated at g, terminating with any suitable distributing device h Within the chamber a.

Where a cold storage is desired to be erected out of reach of a city water system, a suitable water-tank (indicated at t) may be provided with a distributing device j. By such an apparatus or analogous device it is evident that in freezing Weather' the air about the coils e and g or the tank t' will cool the water distributed into the chamber a, so that the water so distributed, preferably in the form of spray, will freeze within the chamber d, and gradually fill said chamber with solid ice. The icing of the chamber@ in this manner can obviously be accomplished in a very economical manuel'. The ice so formed will surround the portions of the cooling-chainber b located wit-hin the ice-chamber. The chamber b is preferably constructed simply of upright joists or timbers, the chamber b openingthus into the chamber a. The chamber b, however, may be covered in a manner hereinafter to be described while the chamber a. is being filled with ice, so that ice will not form within the chamber b unless desired to a certain extent. c

Beneath the ice-chamber ct is a cooling or a refrigerating chamber Za. The flooring between the chambers a and 75 may be constructed of open-work, so that the two chambers will commu nicatefthe one with the other. Thus I prefer to construct the liooring between said chambers of timbers or `joists Z, extending across the'room in one direction,

with additional strips or timbers m extend-- ing across the timbers Z, as indicated in the drawings. Openings will thus be obviously formed between thetimbers Z and m, through one side of the apartment 7o, as indicated at r.

It will readily be seen that by operating the lever q the whole series of troughs n may be movedlaterally. I also design to make said f troughs vertically movable in any suitable manner, so that they may be closed up snugly against the corresponding timbers Z. This may be accomplished, for example, by means v p, the troughs may all be lifted up against the timbers Z thereabove. the troughs willl obviously close thecommu nication between the apartments c and 7c. `When the troughs are let down, communication will Vbe opened between said apartments. If the troughs are let straight down without being moved laterally, it will be apparent that any water dripping from the chamber t between the timbers Z would fall into the troughs, and from thence the water may be carried to a waste-trough, (indicated at The apartment Zt might be kept in a more or less moist condition by simply dropping the troughs n without moving them laterally. If it is desired, however, that water shall drip into and through the chamber k, the troughs n may be moved laterally, as indicated, for

When so elevated, y

example, in Fig. 2, in such .position that the water dripping from the chamber ce may descend past the troughs and upon the door of the apartment Zr. The water may thus be allowed to drip upon certain articles within the chamber 7c and may be allowed to collect in the bottom of the chamber Zt, so as to stand about any'product which maybe located upon the door, as cans of milk, for example. In Fig. l the troughs are shown as formed of metal suitably shaped, while in Fig-2 they are shown formed as of boards or strips u, which maybe provided with edged iianges fr, so constructed that when lthe troughs are moved upward against the corresponding timbers Z the edged flanges o will rmly contact with the corresponding surfaces of said timbers. able supporting-timbers w. The troughs n (indicated .in Fig. 2) are shown formed with grooves @c to facilitate the running off of the water.

In icing the chamber ct it will be understood that the troughs 'n are closed up to cut off communication between the chambers u numeral? indicating cross timbers or strips conforming to strips m, while troughs are in-y dicated at the numeral 3 corresponding to the.

troughs'n.- Said troughs are connected by a strip 4, any suitable means being employed to move the troughsl 3 laterally and to close them` up against corresponding timbers l. It water isy desired to drip within the chamber b, the troughs will'be moved laterally, or if water is to be excluded from the chamber h the, troughs will be moved vup against the timl Y In icing the chamber a I prefer to open the troughs 3 and let ice accumulate in the bottom of the chamber b-say to the depth of one and a half feet-inasmuch as by so doing I can reduce the temperature eight or ten degrees more within the chamberb, and the ice so formed in the floor of the said chamberV keeps warm air fromccoming up from beneath or from the chamber 7c. The chamber b, as will be seen, will be kept cold by being surrounded `with ice, or moisture maybe allowed to drip thereinto, as above explained.

Flues 5 are formed at one side of the chamber a, into which the chamber 7c communicates, as indicated in Fig. l, the lues 5 being communicable into the top of the chamber a, as indicated, the communication being gore The troughs n may rest upon suit- TOO IOSy

IIO

erned by traps or dampers 6. In this way a circulation of air may be provided through the chambers a, and la.

What I claim as my invention isl. In a cold-storage system, the combination of an ice-chamber, the cooling-chamber therebelow communicable one with the other, and a series of horizontally-reciprocatory troughs beneath the base of the ice-chamber, substantially as set forth.

2. In a cold-storage system, the combination of an ice-chamber, a cooling-chamber therebelow communicable the one with the other, and a series of troughs to control said communication reciprocatory in vertical and in horizontal planes, and means to simultaneously reciprocate said troughs, substantially as set forth.

3. In a cold-storage system, the combination of an ice-chamber, a cooling-chamber therebelow, an open floor between said chambers, and a series of vertically and horizontally reciprocatory troughs to control said communication, substantially as set forth.

il. In a cold-storage system, the combination of an ice-chamber, an apartment therebelow, a water-distributing device located in said apartment and communicating with said ice-chamber, a cooling-chamber beneath the ice-chamber and communicating therewith, joists located between the cooling-chamber and the ice-chambers, troughs located below said joists to control said communication,

and means to reciprocate said troughs horizontally and vertically, for the purpose described.

5. In a cold-storage system, the combination of an ice-chamber, a cooling-chamber therebelow communicable the one with the other, an apartment above the ice-chamber,

a water-distributing device in said apartment and communicating into the ice-chamber, a series of horizontally-adjustable troughs to control the communication of the ice-chamber with the cooling-chamber, a flue opening at one end into the cooling-chamber andat the other end vinto the ice-chamber, whereby an air circulation between said chambers may be effected, and means to control said air circulation, substantially as set forth.

6. In a cold-storage system, the combination of two chambers provided with joists therebetween, and the one communicable with the other, a series of troughs located below said joists to control said communication, and a laterally-reciprocatory slide connecting said troughs, substantially as set forth.

7. In a cold-storage system, the combination of an ice-chamber, a refrigerating-chamber located therewithin provided with an open top communicable with thc ice-chamber, and a series of vertically-adjustable troughs reciprocatory in a horizontal plane to govern i ythe communication of the refrigerating-cham 

